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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26338459">Greed</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/OneDyingWish/pseuds/OneDyingWish'>OneDyingWish</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Re:ゼロから始める異世界生活 | Re:Zero Starting Life in Another World (Anime)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Anime-only writer, Drama, Eventual Sex, Eventual Smut, F/M, Family Politics, Fictional Country, High School AU, Main characters are 18, Romance, Sports, Worldbuilding, the explicit rating is for later chapters</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-09-07</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-09-07</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 03:07:08</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Explicit</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>8,846</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26338459</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/OneDyingWish/pseuds/OneDyingWish</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Re:Zero modern high school AU centering around a Subaru/Echidna romance.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Subaru Natsuki/Echidna, Subaru Natsuki/Echidna (Re:Zero)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>13</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>76</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Greed</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Subaru is slightly different from his canon counterpart in this fic for various reasons. For example, he actually attends school, has friends there, and his athleticism is emphasized more. This also takes place in a high school AU, but the country itself is fictional with its own unique worldbuilding. It's some kind of wealthy western country loosely based on Lugunica, and Subaru's being Japanese is unusual. There are multiple other differences between this and canon Re:Zero which will be revealed gradually.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Subaru leaned back in his chair and yawned. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was AP Psychology, last period of the day—an easy lecture-based class that he could pass the time in, mostly on his phone, as he waited for the day to finally be over. Not to mention, his teacher happened to be smoking hot, which made her class go by a little quicker. He was excited to get home and relax in his room… alone. He could play video games, read manga, work out, oh, and text Emilia too. Maybe he'd catch her after the bell rang and get a quick word in. All in all, the school day was almost over, and he was feeling pretty good...</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Isn't it rude to yawn without covering your mouth like that?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Of course, there was </span>
  <em>
    <span>this </span>
  </em>
  <span>girl to deal with. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Uhh… sorry. Yeah, no, you're right, that was totally my bad. Excuse me." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His tone was totally flat and disinterested. He only held eye contact with her for the bare minimum amount of time before looking downwards onto his phone. The girl looked back at him with a blank face of utter disappointment, practically boring holes into the side of his face with her glare. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She turned her whole body in her chair to face him and lightly swatted him with the back of her hand on the shoulder. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Hey, the hell was that for?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Aren't you going to make some sort of cringeworthy reply? What's with this asinine refusal to talk to me?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Asinine…?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He sighed deeply. Yes, this class would be smooth sailing, if it wasn't for a certain girl who insisted on sitting next to him. Echidna Avaricia—a beautiful, fearsomely intelligent, athletic, respected girl, with impressively long silver hair and peculiar, dark eyes that shone like dusky disks of metal whenever she showed interest. She was a senior—the same year and age as him—but she had only transferred to the school last year. No matter—she made varsity in three sports and landed a spot in the top 3 by GPA </span>
  <em>
    <span>and</span>
  </em>
  <span> test scores in extremely quick time. Apparently, she already had a scholarship lined up for an extremely prestigious and competitive university. Subaru knew all of this about her, because he had heard it enough times from Emilia. In fact, he felt like he knew her way more than he would like to. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"...Look, you're totally beautiful and impressive and all, and I should probably be glad a nobody like me is even graced with your mighty presence… but, ah…" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Her eyes widened slightly at something he had said, before fixing him with a serious and expectant face. "But what?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He opened his mouth to say something, before stopping and totally turning to the person in the desk behind him, who was currently trying his best to seem buried in his textbook like a mouse evading danger. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"O-Otto! Bro, you gotta help me out here!" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Subaru clasped his hands together in a gesture like he was praying or giving thanks and bowed his head in Otto's direction. The poor boy practically jumped out of his seat as he looked up at his friend and Echidna in a look of pure terror. "H-Hey, I don't have anything to do with this! Leave me out of it, I'm just trying to study!" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Study? Study for what? I can tell that your book is clearly open to somewhere about 500 pages in, even though we've only covered two or three chapters worth of content so far, so you're really not fooling anyone. Look, man, just say something to her, please!" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Otto looked utterly taken aback. The words caught in his throat as he looked between the two. Echidna was scowling and blushing in Subaru's direction and only intimidating Otto more. Before he could say anything, Echidna's expression seemed to completely soften, as she gently said to him, </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Otto, you're quite involved in theatre here, aren't you?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"H-Huh?" That wasn't what he had expected. The warmth of her tone and demeanor made him start to blush and fluster immediately. "Y-Yeah, I mean yes ma'am, I mean, yeah—" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You don't have to address me so formally," she giggled. "I've attended almost all the plays here since I transferred. You're very good, you know." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Oh, w-wow, thanks—" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"—But since you're so good at theatre, would you mind telling Subaru to stop this </span>
  <em>
    <span>idiotic act</span>
  </em>
  <span>?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>As she said the last few words, her tone shifted from sweet to biting and spiteful and she even turned her head to say the words directly to Subaru, as if dropping Otto out of the conversation entirely. </span>
  <em>
    <span>So much for that plan,</span>
  </em>
  <span> Subaru thought. Free from the deadly crossfire of his classmates, Otto was left to quietly marinate on his awkward but surprisingly flattering interaction with one of the young heirs of the Avaricia family, who otherwise existed in a world apart from him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Hey, it's not an act, okay? Maybe I just don't want to socialize right now. In fact, I'm very depressed and socially withdrawn. I'm way too unstable, and I would be putting you at harm just by talking to you…" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A vein was popping on Echidna's forehead. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You don't </span>
  <em>
    <span>sound</span>
  </em>
  <span> like you're depressed, you absolute buffoon!" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was at that moment that the clicking of heels on the floor drew near and they heard a voice which seemed far too erotic for a high school setting. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Hmm, is this true, Mr. Natsuki? Are you truly depressed and socially withdrawn?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The figure of their teacher, Ms. Granhiert, loomed before his desk. An unbelievably beautiful woman, tall and curvy, in a high-waisted business skirt today that flaunted her astonishingly wide hips and ass, paired with a tucked in blouse that hugged her equally astonishing bust. She had shoulder length black hair and creamy white skin. It was needless to say that she had featured in his sexual fantasies numerous times. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Now that same woman cracked a ruler on his desk much in the way a dominatrix cracks a whip. He jerked back a little in his seat.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Well? This is a very serious matter." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Ah, well… I was kind of just being…" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She cracked the ruler smartly against the desk once more, way too close to his hand for comfort.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Of course, if you </span>
  <em>
    <span>do </span>
  </em>
  <span>have a mental illness, then all the better. That's wonderful, truly wonderful. You can divulge all the secrets of your crippling battle with your inner demons to the rest of the class, just like the way you've let us listen on your conversation since the period began. Doesn't that sound lovely?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He was blushing now out of sheer embarrassment. The class was deadly quiet. "...Err, no, Ms. Granhiert, I'd really rather not… I was just playing around, anyway."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Is that so? Well, to be clear, class, it would actually be a clear violation of my ethics as a teacher to have Mr. Natsuki talk about his alleged mental illness in the first place. It's a shame, truly. But I do hope you'll keep it in mind, </span>
  <em>
    <span>Mr. Natsuki, </span>
  </em>
  <span>to keep it down when I'm lecturing." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He meekly nodded, looking thoroughly uncomfortable. He glanced over at Echidna, who was resting her jaw on her hands and  smirking at him with a sideways look.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"And I would hope that you keep it down as well, Ms. Avaricia." Granhiert held out her ruler close as if she was going to touch the tip to Echidna's chin, but stopped short of doing so, and just eyed her with a smirk. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Of course, Ms. Granhiert." Her tone was polite and perfect. She played the role of the admirable, flawless student-athlete well. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Now, returning to our discussion of operant conditioning…" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The sultry disciplinarian walked away to the board at the front of class to resume her lesson. Subaru threw a nasty look at the girl next to him, but she was smiling and ignoring him now, as if to say, </span>
  <em>
    <span>how does your own medicine taste?</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>----- ----- ----- </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>As the class went on, everyone was, if not attentive, at least quiet. No one wanted to be the subject of another one of Ms. Granhiert's demonstrations, not even a pervert like him. While their teacher was talking about a certain psychologist's "wonderful" research into the effects of rewards and punishments (she especially focused on the latter aspect) on behavior, Subaru's phone suddenly vibrated. All the neurons in his brain started to fire with the idea </span>
  <em>
    <span>Emilia, Emilia, is it Emilia? </span>
  </em>
  <span>He covertly glanced at it to find…</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>… that there was a text from Echidna. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>...Are you kidding me?! I totally forgot I even gave my number to her...</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Her text read: </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>—talk to me after class. seriously. theres something i want to tell you.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He frowned and typed out a reply.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>—Please just tell me what you want now</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>—no &lt;3</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He sighed and closed the messaging app. Why did she have to vex him so much? Although, he had to wonder… </span>
  <em>
    <span>am I being an asshole? </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He glanced over at her. Certainly, under normal circumstances, he would be going out of his way to talk to her. She was friendly, mysterious, interesting, popular, extremely attractive… and </span>
  <em>
    <span>she</span>
  </em>
  <span> had an interest in him, for god knows why. Subaru was the type of person who typically wanted to be everyone's friend, to the point of being obnoxious. So why did he continue to brush her off? </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Because these weren't </span>
  <em>
    <span>normal</span>
  </em>
  <span> circumstances. Until this fall had started, bringing the new school year with it, he had never had any direct interaction with Echidna except for what he heard about her second-hand from Emilia, which wasn't really interacting at all. When his senior year started, it just so happened with his schedule that he ended up sharing not one, but </span>
  <em>
    <span>three</span>
  </em>
  <span> classes with Echidna… and only one with Emilia, unfortunately. Again, normally, he'd be excited to at least have class with such a prestigious and famous character as her, but… he had been turned somewhat into her enemy, though she didn't know it. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Look… </span>
  </em>
  <span>he thought, justifying himself; </span>
  <em>
    <span>if she's gonna make Emilia as upset as she has already, then she's no friend of mine. </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He opened up his messages and prepared to type back a firmly worded reply to make his intent clear—he had </span>
  <em>
    <span>no</span>
  </em>
  <span> interest in talking to her. </span>
  <em>
    <span>No interest. None at all.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He glanced over at her again—a picture of quiet thoughtfulness and elegance as she listened to Granhiert's lecture—and then at his phone. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Yeah, there was no way he could make that text. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Damn it, this is killing me! I don't want to be mean to her… and, I mean, she really is going out of her way to talk to me. She seems nice, it's just… </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Argh! </span>
  </em>
  <span>He vaguely desired to slam his head against the desk. He would just have to wait until after class to see what this enigmatic heiress wanted, and perhaps then he would work up the courage to tell her to leave him alone. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Some relaxing last period this turned out to be… </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Finally, the class ended, with him having hardly absorbed a single word about behaviorism. The bell rang, and as everyone got up with their bags, she looked at him with a quiet smile that felt very ominous. He felt a nervousness growing in his belly when those deep, dark eyes trained on him. He started to say "So—" when she cut him off with her palm extended upright. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Let's talk in the hall." It felt like she purposefully waited for him to say something just so she could interrupt him. He sighed, said "alright," and followed her. Before she left, she said, "Have a wonderful day, Ms. Granhiert," who replied with, "Thank you, and you as well, Ms. Avaricia." It made him feel like he should say something too, so he told her to have a nice day, and the teacher just smiled and nodded at him. Somehow he felt inferior. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>When they were out in the hall, he immediately cut to the chase.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"So, whaddya want?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Echidna leaned against a nearby locker, one leg crossed behind the other and giving him that same smile like she was sizing him up. </span>
  <em>
    <span>She looks way too good in that uniform</span>
  </em>
  <span> was his first thought, and the other was, </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"C'mon, why the hell are you staring at me like that…?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Oh, was I? Sorry." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You don't seem sorry, Ms. Heiress. Now whaddya want already?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Tch. I don't like that nickname. It's frivolous, and inaccurate." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Ok, ok, whatever." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Hmph." She pouted, a look which was admittedly kind of adorable on her, before she regained her relaxed and confident composure. "What I wanted to talk to you about was… well, I was absent yesterday, so I wanted to ask you for your notes from Psychology and Biology 2." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Subaru's face was utterly blank for several seconds, before he burst out into laughter. Echidna immediately looked taken aback and flustered. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"H-Hey, what's so…!" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"A-Are you serious?" He wiped a tear from his eye. "If you wanted that, you </span>
  <em>
    <span>definitely </span>
  </em>
  <span>could have just texted me that. Sure, ok, cool. I'll send you the pics when I get home. My notes definitely suck though, 'cause I'm usually too busy thinking about useless crap to pay attention. Okay, cya!" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He was already turning to go. "S-Stop! Don't just leave so abruptly!" She pulled on his arm and turned him back towards her. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Really, what kind of man are you to just leave a girl so rudely…!" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Your grip is surprisingly strong…" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"W-What?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She was standing there, not very far from him at all, with her arms crossed and pouting even harder now, blush on her cheeks. He was blushing too—just a little bit—from the unexpected touch. With his height, between 5'9 and 5'10, she had to look up at him—though the difference, objectively speaking, wasn't too great, as she was only 3 or so inches shorter than him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"N-Nevermind that. What are you in such a hurry for, anyway? Do you really not have enough time in your </span>
  <em>
    <span>busy day</span>
  </em>
  <span> to chat with a beautiful lady? Good grief… I don't recall you playing a fall sport, or participating in any after-school clubs." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Huh? You know I don't play a… that's some seriously specific knowledge." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I pursue all kinds of knowledge. Don't consider yourself special." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Uh, alright, but that's still really weird to know. In fact, it's more weird now that you put it like that. And so what, maybe I like to cherish my free time! I already wrestle in the winter, I study, I work, I do Jiu-Jitsu like every other day… Cut me a break already, sheesh." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Jiu-Jitsu… huh, I never knew that." Her eyes flitted upwards to the right in thought. "Wait, there are lots of kinds of Jiu-Jitsu, aren't there? Is it the Brazilian kind?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Do I look Brazilian to you? My dad runs his own school around here. That's where I work, actually… and as a matter of fact, he did learn BJJ in his youth, so… wait, none of this is important!" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She smirked. "This is all quite fascinating to me. So, are you some sort of martial arts prodigy, Subaru? It must be hard carrying the burden of your father's legacy around." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"W-Well, I mean, it's not like I'm bad… and yeah, maybe sometimes it's hard trying to be as cool as my dad…" Before he knew it, he was blushing again and rubbing his cheek with his fingertip. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I see. It appears I was slightly mistaken about your excessive free time. Although, you said you work and do martial arts as if they were two separate things, when really you were referring to the same activity, which was rather disingenuous." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He had to cringe a little at the fact she had noticed that. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Still, you are not quite as lazy as I had had you pegged for."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Hey, hey, that's harsh! But I guess anyone is lazy compared to </span>
  <em>
    <span>you, </span>
  </em>
  <span>Ms. honor-society-and-three-sport-athlete." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I don't play three sports anymore. Only two. I had to—I decided to drop soccer so I could make time for my internship with the governor. Who happens to be my grandfather." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Your internship with—yeah, okay, I've heard enough." He laughed and shook his head. "You're totally in a different world than me." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Hmph." She seemed a bit displeased to hear that, and her firmly crossed arms appeared more like she was hugging herself now. "That's what everyone thinks…"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Well, it's only natural people would be intimidated by you. But you know, you're actually kind of pleasant to…" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Wait. Huh?</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He trailed off in the middle of talking. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>At what point did we become all friendly? Didn't she just want some notes?</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"...Huh? What's the problem? What were you going to say just now?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He shook his head like a dog shaking off water. Looking around, the hall which had previously been filled with Lugunica Academy students a couple minutes ago was now sparsely trafficked. "Yeah, sorry, I really have to go now. Jeez… there's pretty much no chance I'm going to catch Emilia after her history class now. I got side-tracked…" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Echidna's face darkened. Right as he was about to go, she grabbed him by the lapels of his blazer and stepped in closer, her knee practically between his thighs. She wasn't merely pouting now—she was glaring up at him with a deep intensity and evidently upset. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Is that really why you want to go so bad? Because of </span>
  <em>
    <span>her</span>
  </em>
  <span>?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Subaru Natsuki was totally overwhelmed—his back against a locker and an unbelievably gorgeous woman pinning him there. He held up his trembling hands in the air and felt his whole face heat up and dampen with sweat. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"W-Woah, woah, there are people looking at us…" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I don't care… just answer me! It's her, isn't it… you don't want anything to do with me because of my </span>
  <em>
    <span>cousin.</span>
  </em>
  <span> Just say it!"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He nervously and very lightly put his clammy hands on her wrists. "O-Okay… just release me first, I'm begging you." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Tsk!" She shook her head and pulled her hands away, backing off just a bit before crossing her arms again. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The boy sighed heavily and had to take a moment to regain his breath. Not only had her extremely forward gesture left him hot and bothered, her suspicion had unfortunately hit the nail on the head. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Yes, alright… I wanted to go see your cousin. She's my best friend, and… and yeah. What's so wrong with that, huh? Am I a criminal?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"...You very well might be, the way you spoke about wanting to 'catch' her." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"W-What, no! It's not that deep! Just choice of words, you know what I meant." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Choice of words is important. You had best not say the wrong thing, lest someone get the wrong impression." She delivered those last few words bitterly, still glaring at him with those dark eyes.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"'Lest?' You sound like Emilia… does everyone from your family talk like a bunch of high-class snobs?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Don't talk like you know anything about my family!" He seemed to have struck a nerve with that. He raised his hands again as if trying to deescalate the situation.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"S-Sorry! L-Look, I still don't know why we're even talking… but something tells me this was about way more than just my shitty notes."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The way she didn't dispute it seemed to say he wasn't wrong. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Besides, you could have just asked anyone for notes… hell, one of those girls you sit by is wicked smart. Anyone'd be happy to help you…" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"That's just it," she said quietly. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Huh?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"That's just it. Everyone else, with a few exceptions… they just want to flatter me, or they're so intimidated by me that we can't have anything like a real conversation—your mousey friend, Otto, for example. I could have asked one of them, sure. They would be happy to get on my good side…" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She looked down towards the left and seemed to hug herself again, before finding the resolve to meet his eyes again and continue. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I don't </span>
  <em>
    <span>want</span>
  </em>
  <span> friends like that. People take a look at this hair—" she held up a strand of her glossy silver hair, "and they know my class, my clan. Not to mention, they know the kind of grades I get, all the stupid accolades. I have so many peers and underclassmen from soccer, volleyball, tennis… they all look up to me like I'm perfect, and it makes me sick." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Subaru's face was dark. "...And what does all that have to do with me?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Ha. It's stupid." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Try me." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She looked at him uncertainly, softly. "You… were different from the others. You actually brushed me off, whenever I tried to talk to you, like you didn't care about my status, or anything like that. And you, being from a middle-class and immigrant family… that only made me more curious as to why you were so bold! So—so I wanted to get to know you a bit more, and… huh?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She looked up at him to find that he was gritting his teeth, face clouded over with anger. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"So… so you mean to tell me that you've been moping, feeling bad for yourself, and closing yourself off from others because you're too popular and beautiful? Is that right?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"W-What? It's not as simple as that—" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Are you serious with that shit?!" His voice suddenly rose to a shout. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Hey! Calm down, people are going to—" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"People look up to you, admire you, think you're fantastic, wish they were you, and to top it off, you were born into the ultra rich and powerful! Your grandpop is the fu—the goddamn governor! You don't want friends? That sounds like your problem! Maybe if you tried to get to know people and form an actual connection with them, you would get past all that shit!" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"W-Why are you…? You don't know a thing about it!" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You think I don't deal with assumptions…? I'm one of the few immigrants here from the country that </span>
  <em>
    <span>lost</span>
  </em>
  <span>! And if that wasn't enough, most people think I'm a cringy idiot. And how do you think Emilia feels, huh?! She's dealt with the same assumptions as you, and all the popularity you're complaining about is the same thing that made Emilia so upset last year!" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She had backed away from him in his outburst, but that last comment compelled her to stand her ground and even advance back into his personal space. "What?! What did you just say?! What did she tell you about me?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"She said…" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He hesitated, not just at her sudden approach, but at realizing he probably shouldn't share what he was about to. Yet nonetheless, part of him thought that she </span>
  <em>
    <span>had</span>
  </em>
  <span> to hear it.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"She said she was so excited for you to transfer here… and you just rejected her. You signed up for the same sports she played, and took all of the attention and friends for yourself. I don't know the whole story… I'm sure there's more to it than that, but all I know is you caused her no end of grief!" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She was stunned into silence, only for a moment, before the words slowly came out of her like a dam straining against the weight of the water it can only barely hold back. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You don't know the whole story, huh… that's an understatement. I told you. You don't know even the slightest thing about it. About me, or her, or our family." The words were laced with poison. "All you know is what she told you! And it's clear to me that she didn't tell you the half of it!" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>That dam was threatening to break. Subaru had instinctively backed up, finding himself cornered against the locker again. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"That's…! So what! I trust Emilia enough, that all I need to know is her side…" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"</span>
  <em>
    <span>Goddamn it</span>
  </em>
  <span>," she said, casting her head down. When she lifted it up again, she was laughing. It was a terrible sound.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I actually thought you might have treated me differently because you yourself were different. But you just can't stand me because of her, huh…?" She laughed again, until tears showed at the corner of her eyes. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Honestly, I knew it. I just didn't want to believe it. But… at least I could confirm it for myself." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He didn't know what to say. Going off on Emilia's evil cousin like this didn't feel as good as he thought it would—and now seeds of doubt had been sown as to whether he really knew the situation at all. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was looking like he didn't. As she wiped her eyes with the back of her hand, he stood there, distinctly uncomfortable. At that moment… </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Subaru…?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A soft voice that he would compare to the trumpeting of angels made them both turn their heads. It was Emilia, standing in quiet confusion there in the middle of the hall. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Hey… what's happening between you two?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>At that moment they became </span>
  <em>
    <span>distinctly</span>
  </em>
  <span> conscious of how close the two of them were standing together. She backed away from him immediately as a blush rose to their faces. To make matters more confusing, they hadn't only been standing together, but were quite clearly in the middle of something intense. Echidna's eyes looked brittle, and Subaru looked like a guilty criminal. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"E-Emilia, I can…" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>At that moment, a door opened aggressively beside them. They had been having their entire heated interaction by the lockers only just outside their Psychology class. Ms. Granhiert appeared there with a serene smile that was entirely inappropriate for the situation. She calmly looked between the three of them and then tilted her head towards Subaru. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Would someone please be so kind as to tell me what's going on here?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Her tone was sweet yet conveyed a deadly seriousness under it. He was in a cold sweat, and they all looked at him to respond. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Ms. Granhiert, you… definitely could have broken this up earlier… what, did you not hear all the yelling…?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"</span>
  <em>
    <span>Excuse me? </span>
  </em>
  <span>I don't know what you're possibly talking about." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He whimpered. Echidna shook her head and turned away with a flip of her hair. "This is idiotic. I'm leaving. Goodbye." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The teacher watched her walk away with a smile, before turning her eyes back on him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He looked between his terrifying teacher and Emilia standing there with a frown, both demanding explanations for what he himself didn't understand. He sighed heavily. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>----- ----- ----- </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>After a terribly awkward conversation with Ms. Granhiert, Subaru got his wish of getting to spend time with Emilia after school… in a completely unexpected and undesired way. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They were sitting across from one another at a wooden table in one of the Academy's pleasant courtyards. A tree resplendent with the golden color of fall hung above them. Its dead leaves formed a carpet around their feet, and its branches were looking awfully barren for how early it was into the season. A breeze was blowing, and while it felt good for now, he could catch a hint of the chill to come on that autumn wind. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He had just finished explaining the content of his conversation with Echidna to her, though he left out the bits of oddly pleasant small talk. Emilia had sat there, quietly listening to him, her calm and neutral face turning ever so slightly more troubled as he went on.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"So…. ah, I just hope you aren't too mad at me. And like I said, </span>
  <em>
    <span>I know</span>
  </em>
  <span> I shouldn't have said some of those things to her, about what you had confided in me and all, but I—"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Subaru." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He stopped. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Oh god… she's mad, isn't she</span>
  </em>
  <span>? </span>
  <em>
    <span>I deserve it… </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"...Yeah?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Subaru, I need to tell you something. About her, and our family." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Her tone was so grave as to make him anxious. "O-Ok." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I… I complained a lot to you about her last year, when she transferred. She made me quite a bit upset, as you know." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Yeah, no kidding! That's why—" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I was wrong." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Huh…?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I was wrong about all of that—about how she had been unfair to me, how she rejected me… I was wrong, and I was being a child. She was only looking out for me." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"What are you talking about, Emilia? This isn't anything like you told me." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You have to understand something, Subaru… our family is extremely competitive. Maybe it's more appropriate to call it a 'clan', or a 'house'. I'm sure you already know how influential the Avaricia family is in this country. In a way, it operates similar to a medieval family… there's a lot of emphasis on who inherits certain, well, responsibilities. First and foremost, the most important position is the 'clan head' which is currently occupied by Echidna's grandfather, or my great-uncle. But there are all sorts of other positions too… certain members may be assigned to a specific 'region of influence'..." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Wait, wait, this is way too much, Emilia! You're dumping exposition on me. What are you trying to say?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She flushed a little and seemed dismayed. "I'm sorry, I'm doing my best to explain it, alright! What I'm saying is that Echidna and I are directly competing for the same position. There's a huge emphasis on that kind of thing in our family… and it's awful, but that's how it is. When she pushed me away last year, she was only looking out for me. For both of us, really. The two of us shouldn't be friends, or more than acquaintances. In the end, it'll only be detrimental for us…" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Subaru felt utterly out of his element as he tried to take this in. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"But… but that seems like total bullshit! Even if you're competing, I don't see why you can't be friends! No matter how you slice it, it wasn't necessary for her to make you cry as many times as she did." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Look, you just don't get it!" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"E-Emilia…"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You don't understand anything about it. This is for the best, okay?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I'm sorry, but it just seems like you're telling yourself that!"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"...You wouldn't know." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He felt his heart drop as she echoed the same words that Echidna had uttered to him just half an hour ago. He only wanted to understand Emilia and be there for her, but the gulf between them seemed to be growing larger and larger. It wasn't just today's events… she seemed to be growing more and more distant towards him lately, and he didn't know why. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Um, but… still, was it really necessary for her to hog all the attention, like you said she did! She even took your starting spot on the volleyb—" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"That's neither here nor there! Goodness, Subaru, really… I told you just now, I was stupid to think those kind of things. At the time, I didn't understand why she was pushing me away, but that's not all—I was being selfish and moody too, and resisting change like a child…" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You're being way too hard on yourself, Mili!" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"...Please don't call me that." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Huh? Uh, sorry." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"And… and, I wanted to say, that I'm not mad at you, but, I really don't like how you told Echidna about the things I said today. I know—I know you were thinking you were defending me, or something, and you were influenced by my own biased version of the story… but it really wasn't necessary, regardless. Those were things I confided in you…" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Emilia…" his voice was small. He wanted to protest, but there wasn't anything more to say. "I'm really sorry…" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She frowned. "...It's okay. Like I said, I'm at fault too… I'm not mad at you." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"...You sure about that? You seem pretty upset to me, are you okay?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She frowned and seemed to scoot backwards slightly in her seat. "I'm fine. I don't—I don't need you to comfort me." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>That response felt like a knife in his belly. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He felt he had royally fucked things up. There wasn't much more to say, and a sad awkwardness descended over them as they sat for a moment. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I'm really sorry about all of this," Emilia said, as she got up. "I have to go home now." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>…"I'm sorry too, Mili." He cringed and realized his mistake too late, but she didn't correct him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"One more thing," she said. He looked up at her. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Please don't be mean to Echidna anymore. Her and I might not be able to be friends, but there's no reason you can't be her’s… if you want to. Just… don't blow her off like you've been doing." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"...Alright." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She quietly walked off across the courtyard and left him there. </span>
</p><p><br/>
<br/>
</p><p>
  <span>----- ----- -----</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>So much for a relaxing afternoon this had turned out to be. He walked back home with his hands in his pockets, head bent towards the ground, his vexation like a black miasma hanging over him. His parents could notice it immediately. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>When he walked through the door, his dad greeted him with "Welcome home son! Is my boy winning in li—oh." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Hey dad. Hey mom," he said flatly. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I suppose he isn't winning in life," his mom observed. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Nah, I totally am." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His father crossed his arms and said seriously, "...Anything you want to talk about, Subaru?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"No thanks. I'm good for now." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His parents shared a glance between them, his mother seeming to shrug. Subaru passed between them and walked upstairs to his room. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Kenichi furrowed his brow and rubbed his chin in a gesture of deep thought, a true image of an ancient philosopher. "Do you think it's girl troubles again?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"It's definitely girl troubles again," Naoko replied. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Subaru set his bag down, locked his door, and sighed. In the blackness of his room, he sank to the floor and began to quietly cry… </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Just kidding. That was not what he did. After that single sigh which seemed to embody the weight of his oppressive mood, he struck a pose with his finger pointing up to the ceiling and boldly declared to no one, "I'm Subaru Natsuki, and I'm going to spend the rest of my day doing nothing!" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>As the silence ensued, even he got a little second-hand cringe from his own declaration. "Yeah, I am bummed out after all that, I'm not gonna lie," he said to himself. He laid down onto his bed, put his hands behind his head, and looked up at the ceiling. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I guess Mili is mad at me now… great. I had to run my big mouth, huh? And she told me not to call her by her nickname. What's up with that? She didn't do that before, did she?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He sat there, overthinking his 'relationship' with Emilia, as he was wont to do. Eventually, though, his thoughts turned to that enigmatic girl who looked so much like her and not at all at the same time. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>It was actually pretty easy to get along with her… until I started yelling at her, basically. Now I feel like a dick. At the same time, I still don't know if I could ever forgive her for what Emilia went through last year. The situation is more complicated than I knew, but I still can't accept that what she did was right, and Emilia was just in the wrong, and that it's as simple as that… It seems more like, Echidna's actions made sense from her perspective, even if they weren't the best way to handle it...</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>...Yeah, I definitely shouldn't have been as much of a jerk as I've been to her… although she kind of liked that, strangely? At the very least, I should respect Emilia's wishes… </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Suddenly, he remembered something. He opened up his phone, finding that he had received a few texts from his ex, and various unimportant notifications from social media and news sites. He swiped away Rem's messages and decided he would check them later, though he left the gaming and anime website notifs. Right now, it was more important to send this message to Echidna:</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>—Do you still want the notes</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A couple minutes later, "Read 3:40 PM" showed up under his message, but no response, even after several more minutes, nor would one come for the rest of the night. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Guess she doesn't. </span>
  </em>
  <span>He wasn't sure why, but he was pretty disappointed by that. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He spent the rest of the evening doing nothing in particular, except engaging in his usual personal interests, and some unnecessarily intense exercise. Even though he was supposed to rest today, he worked out rather furiously—he did well over a hundred push-ups, a battery of abdominal exercises, squat thrusts. After that, he went down to the garage that had been converted into a gym downstairs and did a few rounds on the punching bag. He was no kickboxer, but it helped for cardio. All the while, he couldn't help but bemoan the state of his fitness out of wrestling season. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>When his father noticed him in the middle of his intense exercise, he had to grin. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You were right, Naoko. He's doing that thing again." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"That thing where he trains really hard after he gets upset?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Indeed. What can I say? That's my son for you." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>----- ----- -----</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The next day, he was apprehensive before his first class with Echidna. He decided he would change his behavior towards her—strictly for Emilia's sake, of course. No more with the asshole act. He resolved that he would try to be on friendly terms with her from now on. Yes, he was Subaru Natsuki, and he was very diplomatic and reasonable and a little bit nervous. With his newfound determination, he stomped into Bio 2 with a grin on his face, plopped into his seat, and found…</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>...that Echidna was sitting on the opposite side of class from him. She had sat next to him in Bio and Psychology since the beginning of the school year, but evidently she now wanted nothing to do with him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"What ever are you so excited about, Subaru Natsuki?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His insane biology teacher was grinning at him. Mr. Romanee-Conti, though he told his students to call him "Mr. Geuse" or just "Geuse,"  was the strangest human being Subaru had ever met. He was sickly pale, his skin almost green, with a bizarre haircut that resembled a monk's tonsure. It wasn't a coincidence; he "had been a monk" in the past. He was tall and freakishly strong, apparently, and coached sprinting on the track team. His teeth were white as sun-bleached bone as he smiled maniacally at Subaru. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Uhh… it's nothing, Mr. Geuse." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Nothing? Nothing? That cannot be, for it must be something. Tell me more, tell me more!" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Uh, I'd really rather not." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Could this be your natural passion and love for life showing? This is fantastic! Splendid! Class! Let us look to Subaru as an inspiration! Such youth, such zeal!!"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She wouldn't even glance at Subaru when he looked her way. </span>
  <em>
    <span>So this is what being ignored is like…?</span>
  </em>
  <span> On another day, Subaru would be happy to entertain Geuse's psychotic banter with some cringy words of his own, but not today. He was starting to realize that his social life was becoming a little more complicated. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Bio passed, without a word shared between them; and later on, it was time for Psychology. Predictably, she had changed her seat in there too. The empty seat beside him seemed to call attention to itself. It felt like the whole class had noticed it, from their murmurs and glances. Otto even poked Subaru in the back and anxiously asked him, "</span>
  <em>
    <span>What did you do?" </span>
  </em>
  <span>and he had no choice but to brush the matter off. He couldn't exactly start telling everyone about the relationship between Echidna, Emilia, and himself, and even if he was to, he really wouldn't even know where to start explaining it. Instead, for the rest of class, he simply marinated over the unnecessarily complicated situation, his own guilty role in it, and what he should do about it, if anything. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He thought about going up to Echidna after class and asking why she had moved… but that might be a little obnoxious. He could surmise why she had moved, after all. She had seemed very upset yesterday to learn the real reason Subaru had discriminated against her… in fact, she almost cried. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Dude, what is wrong with me…</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He thought about just leaving her alone. All Emilia had asked him to do was not be a dick to her. That was pretty easy, if they weren't talking in the first place. Her empty seat was a clear enough statement that she didn't want anything to do with him. He wasn't </span>
  <em>
    <span>obligated</span>
  </em>
  <span> to do anything… </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>… so why did he want so badly to talk to her? Of course, it was only for the vague idea of "making things right". It totally wasn't because he couldn't bear the thought of </span>
  <em>
    <span>not </span>
  </em>
  <span>talking to her. Subaru Natsuki, the man Kenichi raised, was not the type of individual to just create a problem and leave it unsolved. He didn't want to be misunderstood, either. He had realized he had acted unfairly, and he wanted to let her know that. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Yes, his reasoning was leading him to one conclusion. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>I should apologize to her. </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was easier to think that than do it, though. A steady nervousness welled in his gut as the end of the period approached—by the time the bell rang, his leg was bouncing up and down and sending tremors up through his desk. He reluctantly picked up his bag and started to trudge on over to Echidna's side of the room… only to watch her hustle quickly out of class without so much as a glance towards him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He sighed. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Jeez, I can't say that isn't a relief… I'll just have to delay it til tomorrow. But damn, she really doesn't want anything to do with me anymore, does she…? </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>----- ----- -----</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The next day came, and he found himself in the same situation: anxiously waiting for the end of Psychology as Echidna ignored him. He had found a new resolve within himself—when class ended, he would walk right on over there and talk to her. It didn't have to be a big deal, it was nothing to be worried about—he would just man up and set things right. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Finally, the bell rang… and he felt like the protagonist of some kind of gambling manga, with the way he was sweating. He caught her at her desk right as she was standing up to leave. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Uh, hey," he said, looking supremely awkward. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Her response was calm. "And what do you want?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Err… if you have a chance, I'd really like to talk to you." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The tips of her mouth curled up lightly in a smile. "Is that so? I'm not sure if I can fit you into my schedule." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He cringed a little, feeling like his words were being echoed back at him. "Just—just a moment of your time, please. I'd be grateful for it." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She closed her eyes and sighed. "Very well. If you ask so nicely, how can I refuse?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"...Thanks." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Let's go outside. And by the way, I'm only entertaining this because I don't intern today." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Oh. Well, I appreciate it regardless… wait, where are you going?" After they had left Granhiert's class, Echidna continued walking on past the nearby lockers. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Didn't you hear me? I said let's go </span>
  <em>
    <span>outside.</span>
  </em>
  <span>" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He followed her lead as she pushed a door open to one of the school courtyards. The stone path in front of them cut across grass shining gold-on-green in the light, the whole scene swept with leaves gold and red as a pleasantly warm wind rustled her silver hair. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She stopped and turned to look back at him, holding her hands behind her back. "You can tell me as we walk, right?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Sure… though I didn't expect this kind of setting." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"What do you mean?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I figured we would talk outside Ms. Granhiert's class. Though this is more pleasant than being cornered against a locker, I suppose." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She chuckled. "I'm inclined to agree." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He nodded. The silence lingered for a little bit too long after that, and yet, it didn't seem to feel out of place. Walking along with her, taking in the nice fall scenery—he felt oddly calm. In general, Subaru was the kind of person who wasn't fond of silence—he always felt like he should be saying something, if only to make the other person feel less awkward. But he didn't feel any trace of discomfort from her, nor did she pressure him. There was something comfortable in the silence between them now. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"This is my favorite tree in the yard," she said. They drifted to a stop along a bend in the path, as gently as a rowboat upon a bank, before a short but stout tree with milky white bark and dark red leaves like blood. There wasn't a single tree around that quite looked like this one—but it had an eeriness to it, like it was almost sickly.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Huh. It's… pretty." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Don't you think so? There's something beautiful, yet ominous about it. Fall suits it well." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"It's a pretty spectacular sight, up close like this. But, I never paid it any mind before, to tell you the truth." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Is that so? Perhaps you should look with your eyes more often, Subaru Natsuki." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Excuse me?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She smiled and turned around on her heels, away from him, as if leaving him to think on it. She walked off the path and onto the grass, under the shade of the leaves. He walked up to the edge of the path. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Echidna… aren't you a little more mad at me?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Mad?" She was serene. "What made you think that?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Well… c'mon, isn't that obvious? You don't sit by me anymore, you don't talk to me… hell, you were really in a big hurry to leave class yesterday, too."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"From Psychology?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Yeah." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I had to intern yesterday. I can't exactly be late." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"W-Wait, so that was just cause of work? I was sure that…" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Sure of what?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"A-Ah, well… I thought you just really really wanted to avoid me." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Oh?" She laughed, a modest yet playful thing. "So you leapt to the most selfish conclusion. You flatter yourself too much, don't you think?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"H-Hey! Cut me a break… " He would have protested a bit more, but he felt like he kind of deserved it. At the same time, her voice had no real bitterness to it—more playful than biting. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Though, it wouldn't be wrong to say that I was thinking of you these past couple days." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Wait, what?" His tone was very flat, as when someone hears something totally incredulous. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"D-Don't react like that!" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You're the one who made it sound weird!'</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She was blushing, pouting, and crossing her arms. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Holy crap, she looks cute like that.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Good grief. I only meant that, the only reason I changed seats in the first place was out of consideration for you." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Consideration? But…"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He thought about it for a second, and realized what she meant. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You mean… cause you figured I didn't want anything to do with you… on account of how I basically said you ruined Mili's life and all." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Mili? Oh, my cousin. Yes, that's essentially right." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Well…" He stepped forward off of the stone path and up onto the grass and shade beyond where she was standing. "I wanted to clear things up between us." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She seemed a little taken aback. She hugged herself again, eyed him uncertainly, and said "...What do you mean?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I mean… I wanted to apologize." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"...?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I wanted to apologize, okay! I was way too much of a jerk. I brushed you off for weeks and then I yelled at you when you tried to open up to me… and even though I can't completely forgive you for making Emilia upset, and I don't really get it, you were trying to look out for her, in your own way… at least that's what I think. I just feel like I've been way too unfair to you, so… I wanted to say sorry." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She did not seem prepared for such an overflow of words. They were standing closer now that he had entered under the shade, but she seemed almost to shrink away from him a little, hugging herself and looking up at him with a skeptical frown. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"My… my cousin didn't put you up to this, did she…?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His lips parted in surprise. She took that as an answer enough and started to turn away, when he lightly put his hand on her shoulder. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Listen, no! I did talk to her, okay? She explained some things to me, and that's how I realized I was out of line. All she asked me to do was not be mean to you… she never told me to apologize. I swear, I'm only doing this because it's my choice!" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"...And why do you care so much?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Because I want to keep talking to you, okay?!" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>That</span>
  </em>
  <span> took her off guard. Her mouth dropped in a quiet gasp. She could feel her face heating up—in her neck, her cheeks, her ears. She looked at him, then to his hand on her shoulder, and back at him. He pulled his hand away, blushing lightly and muttering "sorry about that". </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Do you… do you really mean that?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Y-Yes! I'm serious! I didn't realize it before, but not having you next to me sucks!" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She looked even more startled at that. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I-In Bio and Psych, I mean, haha…" He chuckled awkwardly and waved his hands. He had closed his eyes for a second, and when he opened one of them, she was standing there, looking down at the ground and gripping the hem of her skirt. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"So… you want to talk to me?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He started to say something, but she cut him off, louder and more desperate now and looking him right in the eyes. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You're not scared of me, or just want to flatter me...?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He stepped in just a bit closer. "'Course not! Actually, um, ah, I feel like I weirdly get along with you a lot… so I'd really like if we could talk again." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Her lips hung open, parted, as if in disbelief. At that moment, the sun came out from behind a cloud, and its rays shone through the roof of bloodred leaves above, filtering pale red light upon the both of them in patterns beautiful and strange and shifting like refractions in water. It passed as quickly as it had come, and the beauty of that moment was only dimly registered by the two of them who were so wrapped up in their own feelings. He hung upon her next word, while Echidna, wide-eyed, did not quite know what to say—with the effect that they stared at one another for an awkward amount of time. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Subaru faltered. "Did I say something weird…? Sorr—" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"No," she interjected. "Not at all. I… I would be happy to talk to you again." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was hard for her to meet his eyes. She was terribly conscious of her own blush, and it embarrassed her—but she found her courage as she told him, </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I'll accept your apology." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"O-Oh, for real?! That makes me way more relieved than even I expected…" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"H-Huh? What do you mean?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Nothing. It's just that I was so nervous about all of this, you really took a weight off my chest." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I-I don't get why you would be so nervous. I was just a nuisance to you a couple days ago." She shook her head and hugged herself again, as if this was all too silly for her. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Hey, hey, that makes me sound really cruel, you know. What's done is done! And I told you, I get along with you in a weird way." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"'What's done is done'... that's such a vague and uninsightful thing to say, really. I suppose you feel the same way about my history with Emilia?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He sighed and shrugged. "Begrudgingly, yes."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"If you're begrudging it, that would seem to contradict the statement." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Please, save me the English lesson. What I mean is I'll forgive all the Emilia stuff, as long you don't hurt her again."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Now you're making me sound like… for heaven's sake, nevermind." She seemed like she was a bit done with him, but in the way one gets mildly annoyed with a friend's antics. With her arms still crossed, she walked past him and back onto the stone path. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I'm going to leave now. It's about time I got home and studied." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Alright, sounds good! So, uh, looking forward to talking to you more! And thanks for showing me this tree!" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Please… don't sound so awkward." She looked back at him and smiled, before turning and leaving.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Her heart was as warm as a fire as she walked away.</span>
</p><p><br/>
<br/>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Thank you for reading! This chapter is a lot of set-up for what will come next. I do not have the patience for a slow burn, so they will start dating next chapter, and will be fucking pretty soon after that. That will probably be more exciting. I usually cut right to the smut but for this fic I'm taking a slightly more gradual approach. I plan to have some chapters which are more focused on drama and others which are more smutty and/or slice-of-lifeish. Throughout all of it Subaru and Echidna's relationship will remain at the center, though. Stay tuned for another chapter hopefully in a month from now or less.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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